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er Chad Lundgren, former editor of ASFacts, reports. “According to Vincent's landlord (and friend) Frank, Vin- cent felt anxious and called 911 late Saturday, November 7. He collapsed and had to be put on a gurney. “While on the gurney, Frank assured him he would lock up his apartment, and Vincent asked him to shut a window too – which if you know Vincent, is very like him,” continued Chad. “He'd want the apartment to be securely locked. That may be the last thing he ever said, as the hospital said he did not have a pulse for around an

hour, until he was put on life support.” The World Fantasy Awards winners for works pub- According to doctors at the hospital, a blood clot lished in 2019 were announced during the virtual World lodged in Vincent’s lungs, preventing his heart from beat- Fantasy 2020 (WFC) convention, held October 29- ing. Vincent never regained consciousness. All tests November 1, reported Locusmag.com. showed no sign of brain activity, and he was legally de- The Life Achievement Awards, presented annually to clared dead on November 9. Per Vincent’s wishes, one of individuals who have demonstrated outstanding service to his kidneys was donated. the fantasy field, went to and Rowena Vincent was a staunch atheist who “treated everyone Morrill. fairly,” said Chad. “He had high-functioning autism and a The World Fantasy Awards winners are: job he enjoyed, working in IT at LifeROOTS – an organi- BEST NOVEL: Queen of the Conquered by Kacen zation that helps people with disabilities.” Callender, BEST NOVELLA: Silver in the Wood by Emily Born June 9, 1971, Vincent enjoyed , Tesh, BEST SHORT FICTION: “Read After Burning” by computers and computer games. At ASFS meetings, , BEST ANTHOLOGY: New Suns: which may be the only in-person group to which he be- Original Speculative Fiction by People of Color edited by longed, he often sat against the back wall with his bicycle. , BEST COLLECTION: Song for the Unraveling In virtual meetings this summer and fall, Vincent often of the World by Brian Evenson, BEST ARTIST: Kathleen forwarded links to websites that related to that month’s Jennings, SPECIAL AWARD – PROFESSIONAL: Ebony Eliz- topic or talk, and offered technical advice to those having abeth Thomas, for The Dark Fantastic: Race and the Im- issues with Zoom. agination from Harry Potter to the Hunger Games, and Another thing Chad remembers about Vincent was SPECIAL AWARD – NON-PROFESSIONAL: Bodhisattva his “near eidetic memory for places. I mentioned going to Chattopadhyay, Laura E. Goodin & Esko Suoranta, for a fellow fan's house for a movie screening and when he Fafnir: Nordic Journal of Science Fiction and Fantasy Research. This year’s judges were Gwenda Bond, Galen Dara, • December 11: Virtual Holiday Show & Tell of PAN- Michael Kelly, Victor LaValle, and Adam Roberts. For demic foods, treasured decorations, and holiday out- more information, see the WFC website. fits. Plus socializing and some film shorts.

• January 8, 2021: Virtual Group Book Discussion! ASFS MEMBER LUNDGREN DIES What did you read in 2020 & would recommend? • February 12: Unknown program at virtual meet- Vincent Lundgren, longtime member of the Albu- ing. Plus ASFacts (Deadline Monday, Feb 8). querque Science Fiction Society and Bubonicon attendee, • March 12: Unknown, probably virtual. Possibly a died on November 9 after a blood clot entered his lungs. guest presentation. He was 49 years old. • April 9: Probably still virtual. Maybe a movie? His death was unexpected since he biked everywhere For sure, the Spring ASFacts (deadline Mon, April 5). and seemed in better shape than most of his family, broth- • May 14: Again, unknown. Maybe in-person?

Club Officers: Jessica Coyle & Craig Chrissinger, co-Zec Secs (505) 266-8905. Harriet Engle, Moderator. Grant Kuck, alternator. Kris Kringle & Rudolph the Reindeer, Holiday Hosts. Bubonicon 52: Take Two Chair: Craig W. Chrissinger. heard the address, he said, ‘Oh yeah, that's an odd block, there is a police officer three doors down, and around the SF BOOK GROUP READS ON corner there's a couple that both work for the Sheriff's The Droids & Dragons SF Book Group meets 7:30 office.’ When I went there, he was right.” pm Monday, December 21, virtually in a Zoom chat ses- He also enjoyed hiking, often in the Sandia Moun- sion to discuss Trail of Lightning: The Sixth World Book tains. Since Vincent found cremation “logical,” his ashes 1 by New Mexico’s Rebecca Roanhorse. The group then will be scattered in the mountains once the COVID-19 meets virtually January 18, 2021, to talk about The Sky Is situation is better. Chad notes that with the worsening Yours by Chandler Klang Smith. numbers of cases, the family decided to postpone the cer- Meetings of the D&D Book Group are open to all emony. “Certainly, if Vincent were alive, he would ques- readers on the 3rd Monday of each month. Books for dis- tion traveling at this time,” said Chad. “According to cussion are chosen two months in advance, and group Frank, he lectured people on the bus without masks, members receive a 20% discount on them at Page One which I find easy to believe.” Books. For more info: Leah at [email protected] Vincent was an advocate of the International Dark- or Craig at 266-8905. Sky Association, “even paying for a shade for his apartment porch light out of his own pocket,” said Chad. In lieu of flowers, the family is instead suggesting people GOODREADS NAMES BEST OF 2020 make a donation at https://darksky.salsalabs.org/ th tribute_pmt_form/index.html. Winners of the 12 annual Goodreads Choice Vincent is survived by father Steven; siblings Chad Awards for the “best books of 2020,” as chosen by users (and sister-in-law Karen), Nate, Isaac, Jeff, and Beverly of the site, were announced December 8. These are the (with brother-in-law Derek); as well as nieces Matilda, only major book awards decided by readers. There are Joy and Bet, and nephew William. several categories of genre interest: FICTION: The Midnight Library by Matt Haig (a wild- ly inventive blend of literary and speculative fiction in which each book in a library represents a different path your life could have taken.), The Science Fiction & Fantasy Writers of America FANTASY: House of Earth and Blood by Sarah J. (SFWA) has named the 37th recipient of Maas (an introduction to her new Crescent City series, in the Memorial Grand Master Award, re- which complex heroine Bryce Quinlan and fallen angel ported Locusmag.com at the beginning of December. Hunt Athalar track a lethal demon) [Black Sun by NM’s SFWA president said, “I have Rebecca Roanhorse also was nominated.], loved Nalo Hopkinson’s work since 1999 when I discov- SCIENCE FICTION: To Sleep in a Sea of Stars by ered her through the short story “Precious” in a Datlow/ Christopher Paolini (a sustained gaze into the future of Windling anthology Silver Birch, Blood Moon. Each new humankind in which scientist Kira Navárez is scouting an piece continues to delight me and stretch me as a reader as-yet-uncolonized planet and discovers an alien relic that and makes me bolder as a writer. will change the fate of Earth and its colonies), “Naming Nalo as Grand Master recognizes not only HORROR: Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia (a her phenomenal writing but also her work as an educator pitch-perfect Gothic horror story in the old-school mode, who has shaped so many of the rising stars of modern but with contemporary perspectives on race and colonial- SFF,” Kowal continued. ism), Hopkinson, born in December 1960, is a Jamaican- HUMOR: Strange Planet by Nathan W. Pyle (featuring born Canadian speculative fiction writer and editor. Since blue aliens who think and act just like us humans, but 2013, she has lived and taught in Riverside, CA. Her nov- with a hilarious kind of specificity), els (Brown Girl in the Ring, Midnight Robber, The Salt SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY: A Life on Our Planet: My Roads, The New Moon's Arms) and short stories such as Witness Statement and a Vision for the Future by David those in her collection often draw on Caribbean Attenborough (part testimony, part memoir, and part ur- history and language, and its gent call to arms), traditions of oral and written GRAPHIC NOVELS & COMICS: Heartstopper: Volume storytelling. Three by Alice Oseman (continuing love story of Charlie The Grand Master Award, and Nick, now open & out, and ready to meet the world), given for “lifetime achievement YOUNG ADULT FANTASY & SCIENCE FICTION: The in science fiction and/or fanta- Queen of Nothing by Holly Black (final installment in sy,” will be presented at the vir- Black’s wildly popular series reveals the ultimate fate of tual SFWA Nebula Conference Jude, exiled mortal Queen of Faerie, and a girl with ex- to be held June 4-6, 2021. For tremely interesting problems), more, see the SFWA website.

Page 2 SITHFACTS, December 2020 MIDDLE GRADE & CHILDREN’S: The Tower of Nero: Bova’s best-known works involved plausible sciences The Trials of Apollo Book 5 by Rick Riordan (the final about humanity’s expansion into the universe, looking at adventure of the Greek god Apollo, incarnated on Earth as how we might adapt to live in space with novels such as hapless teenager Lester Papadopoulos), 1992’s Mars, about the first human expedition to the red PICTURE BOOKS: Antiracist Baby by Ibram X. Kendi planet. He followed that novel up with additional install- (innovative picture book dedicated to creating a more ments, forming the Grand Tour series, which explored all equitable future for everyone). of the solar system’s major bodies. The latest installment, Goodreads reports 5.67 million votes cast this year. Uranus, was published in July, and was scheduled to be For more information, and all winners and nominees go to the first of a trilogy. The second installment, Neptune, is www.goodreads.com/choiceawards. scheduled for release next year. The ESF notes that “the straightforwardness of Bova’s agenda for humanity may mark him as a figure SF AUTHOR BOVA DIES AT 88 from an earlier era; but the arguments he laces into some-

Scientist, winner, prolific science fic- times overloaded storylines are arguments it is important, tion author/editor, and Bubonicon 38 Guest of Honor Ben perhaps absolutely vital, to make.” Bova passed away November 29, due to complications Bova attended Temple University in Philadelphia, from COVID-19 and a stroke. He was 88 years old, re- where he met Rosa Cucinotta; they married in 1953 and ported Tor.com. had a son and a daughter before divorcing in 1974. That Word of Bova’s passing first came from Kathryn year he married Barbara Berson Rose, who predeceased Brusco, who posted on Twitter, “My Uncle Ben...by mar- him in 2009. He married Rashida Loya in 2013; she sur- riage...science fiction icon, author, adventure lover, story vives him. teller, futurist, and my son's namesake, , has He graduated from Temple with a journalism degree passed away this morning from COVID-19 related pneu- in 1954, earned a master’s in communications from the monia and a stroke. Needless to say, he will be missed State University of New York at Albany, and a doctorate terribly by us and the world.” in education from California Coast University in 1996. Born November 8, 1932, in Philadelphia, PA, Bova Bova worked as a newspaper reporter before becom- brought experience to the science fiction genre that few ing a technical editor and science writer for the Project authors could match: he worked as a technical editor for Vanguard satellite launch program in the ‘50s. He worked Project Vanguard, the first effort on the part of the U.S. to for Avco Everett Research Laboratory during their studies launch a satellite into space in 1958. Bova went on to of lasers and fluid dynamics in the ‘60s and early ‘70s work as a science writer for Avco Everett Research La- before taking over at Analog. boratory, which built the heat shields for the Apollo 11 He was president of SFWA from 1990-92 and served module, putting man on the Moon and ensuring that sci- on the board of governors of the National Space Society, ence fiction would continue to increasingly define the eventually becoming president emeritus. He taught at future. Harvard University and at the Hayden Planetarium, and It was around that time that Bova began writing and often appeared as a guest scientist on prominent programs publishing science fiction. He published his first novel, including Good Morning America and The Today Show. The Star Conquerors, in 1959, and followed up with doz- He won a Skylark Award in 1974, a Robert A. Heinlein ens of others in the following years, as well as numerous Award from the Heinlein Society in 2008, and a First short stories that appeared in publications such as Amaz- Fandom Hall of Fame Award in 2016. ing Stories, Analog Science Fact and Fiction, Galaxy Magazine, The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction, WASHINGTON POST NAMES BEST and others. In 1971, he took over the helm of Analog following 2020 SF/FANTASY/HORROR the death of its long-running editor, John W. Campbell Jr. – a huge task, given Campbell’s influence on the genre to The Washington Post has released its list of the best that point. According to the Encyclopedia of Science Fic- science fiction, fantasy and horror books of 2020, as cho- tion, Bova doubled down on the publication’s tendencies sen by Silvia Moreno-Garcia and Lavie Tidhar, reported towards technological realism and Hard SF, “but consid- Locusmag.com on November 30. erably broadened its horizons.” While there, he published Books listed are Tender Is the Flesh by Agustina notable stories such as Joe Haldeman’s Hero (which be- Bazterrica, translated by Sarah Moses, The Order of the came The Forever W ar), and earned the Hugo Award for Pure Moon Reflected in Water by Zen Cho, The Only Best Editor for numerous consecutive years before step- Good Indians by Stephen Graham Jones, War of the ping down in 1977. From there, he became the first editor Maps by Paul McAuley, and The Silence of the Wilting of Omni Magazine until 1982, and consulted on television Skin by Tlotlo Tsamaase. shows such as The Starlost and Land of the Lost. Silvia Moreno-Garcia is the author of Mexican Goth-

Page 3 SITHFACTS, December 2020 ic, Gods of Jade and Shadow and Signal to Noise. Lavie Tidhar is the author of several novels, including The Vio- NEW YORK TIMES NAMES 100 lent Century, A Man Lies Dreaming, Central Station and, most recently, By Force Alone. NOTABLE BOOKS FOR 2020

The editors of The New York Times Book Review NM NATURAL HISTORY SCIENTIST have selected 100 Notable Books of 2020, reported Lo- cusmag.com on November 23. Among the books are the TO BE ON MARS ROVER TEAM following titles of genre interest: The Death of Jesus by J.M. Coetzee, The Death of On November 23, the New Mexico Museum of Natu- Vivek Oji by Akwaeke Emezi, Red Pill by Hari Kunzru, A ral History & Science (MNHS) announced that Dr. Larry Children’s Bible by Lydia Millet, Tokyo Ueno Station by Crumpler, museum geologist and Bubonicon 40 science Yu Miri, translated by Morgan Giles, Earthlings by guest, was among 13 scientists recently selected by Sayaka Murata, translated by Ginny Tapley Takemori, NASA to the science team of the Mars 2020 Perseverance Kim Jiyoung, Born 1982 by Cho Nam-Joo, translated by Rover mission. Jamie Chang, Little Eyes by Samanta Schweblin, translat- The new mission scientists will perform scientific ed by Megan McDowell, Sharks in the Time of Saviors investigations as part of the team operating the Persever- by Kawai Strong Washburn, Memorial by Bryan Wash- ance rover when it lands next February 18. Crumpler, a ington, and How Much of These Hills Is Gold by C Pam volcanology and space sciences researcher, was selected Zhang. after a national and international search for science partic- A Children’s Bible by Lydia Millet also is among ipants for the upcoming mission to the Red Planet. their ten best books of the year. For more information, see In his new role as a science team member on Perse- The New York Times website. verance, Crumpler continues his rover-related Mars re- search. Crumpler previously spent 15 years as a scientist on the Spirit and Opportunity missions, where MNHS RACHEL CAINE DIES was one of only two museums nationwide to be a part of Author Roxanne Longstreet Conrad, who wrote as the mission. In his new role on the Perseverance team, he Rachel Caine, died November 1 of cancer shortly after will be documenting the geology along the rover’s path, entering hospice care, reported Locusmag.com. She was much like a geologist does in the field. He will be making 58 years old. use of most of the instruments on the Perseverance rover Caine was a prolific author of more than 50 books, to facilitate the investigation, including the SuperCam best known for the Morganville Vampires series and the built by a team at Los Alamos National Laboratory. Weather Warden universe. And she was co-Guest of Hon- "The Spirit and Opportunity rovers confirmed the or at Bubonicon 48 in 2016. presence of water in the past on Mars and the fact that the Roxanne Longstreet was born April 27, 1962, at planet has complex geology that is similar in many ways White Sands Missile Range in southern New Mexico, and to New Mexico," said Crumpler. "Now we are going to grew up in West Texas. She went to Texas Tech Universi- Mars to look for evidence of past life. So the Space Sci- ty, graduating with an accounting degree and a minor in ences department at the Museum will now encompass music in 1995, and worked as a professional musician and some aspects of the Museum’s other specialty - fossils. in corporate communications. We will be looking for microfossils or other evidence of She was a professional musician who played with past microbial life – in this case, on Mars instead of in notable musicians including Henry Mancini, Peter Nero, New Mexico." and John Williams. She was also an avid movie buff and One of Crumpler’s tasks on the mission will include TV watcher and said she "prefers a good stout Guinness evaluating the use of the new helicopter “Ingenuity” for to wimpy American beers." geologic research along the rover’s traverse in its landing In 1999, Conrad became employed in corporate com- site, the Jezero Crater. Crumpler had been a science team munications as a web designer, editor, corporate commu- member on the development of the proposed Mars heli- nications manager, and finally as director of corporate copter “Scout” in 2014, which communications for a large multinational company. She was adopted as a technology ex- took an eight-month hiatus for most of 2008 to meet periment on the Perseverance mis- pressing deadlines, and retired from her position in 2010. sion. She met her husband, the artist Cat Conrad, at a con- Perseverance will land at the vention in 1991. In 2010, she became a full-time writer. site of an ancient Martian river She lived in north Texas with her husband, and did most delta. The mission goals include a of her writing at home and on the road during appearanc- search for evidence for past mi- es. In 2018, she was diagnosed with soft tissue carcinoma. crobial life preserved in the sedi- Her debut novel was Stormriders in 1990, tie-in fic- ments.

Page 4 SITHFACTS, December 2020 tion for the Shadow World roleplaying game, published as Roxanne Longstreet (later reprinted under the name Ian

Hammel). Other novels as Longstreet include The Undead Sheree Renée Thomas will be the new editor of The (1993), Red Angel (1994), Cold Kiss (1995), and Slow Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction starting with the (1996). As Roxanne Conrad, she published Copper March/April 2021 issue, replacing current editor C.C. Moon (1997), Bridge of (1998), and Exile, Texas Finlay, who is stepping down to devote more time to his (2003). writing. Gordon Van Gelder remains as publisher. Thom- She began using the Rachel Caine pseudonym for her as will be the tenth editor in F&SF‘s history, which is Weather Warden universe, starting with Ill Wind in 2003 currently in its 71st year of publication, reported Lo- and including Heat Stroke, Chill Factor, Windfall, Fire- cusmag.com in early November. storm, Thin , Gale Force, Cape Storm, and Total To prepare for the transition, F&SF closed to submis- Eclipse in 2010. A 10th volume, Red Hot Rain, was sions in October 2020, and plans to reopen in January planned, but unfinished due to health problems. The - 2021. For more information, see the F&SF website. off Outcast Season series began in 2009 with Undone, and was followed by Unknown, Unseen, and Unbroken. Other adult series under the Caine name are the Red Let- ter Days books (2005-2006): Devil’s Bargain and Devil’s Due, and the Revivalist series: 2011’s Working Stiff, Two London (CNN) – British actor , who Weeks’ Notice, and Terminated in 2013. played Darth Vader in the original trilogy, died Her popular Morganville Vampires YA fantasy series November 28, from complications of COVID-19 at a hos- started in 2006 with Glass Houses, and includes The Dead pital in London, England. He was 85 years old. Girls’ Dance, Midnight Alley, Feast of Fools, Lord of Prowse died after a short illness, according to his Misrule, Carpe Corpus, Fade Out, Kiss of Death, Ghost agent Thomas Bowington. CNN reported in 2018 that Town, Bite Club, Last Breath, Black Dawn, Bitter Blood, Prowse was being treated for prostate cancer. Fall of Night, and Daylighters in 2013. The Great Library "It's with great regret and heart-wrenching sadness series, begun in 2015, is Ink and Bone, Paper and Fire, for us and millions of fans around the world, to announce Ash and Quill, Smoke and Iron, and Sword and Pen in that our client DAVE PROWSE M.B.E. has passed away 2019. With Ann Aguirre she wrote YA novels Honor at the age of 85," Bowington Management said on Twitter Among Thieves in 2018, Honor Bound, and this year’s November 29. Honor Lost. She also wrote standalone Shakespearean YA "May the force be with him, !" his former Prince of Shadows in 2014. agent, Thomas Bowington, said in a statement to the Caine also wrote thrillers, notably several volumes in BBC. "Though famous for playing many monsters – for the Stillhouse Lake series, an intense thrillers about Gwen myself, and all who knew Dave and worked with him, he Proctor, the ex-wife of an infamous serial killer who is was a hero in our lives." constantly on guard for her kids against Internet trolls and Prowse wore the black suit and helmet to play Darth real-life stalkers. The fifth volume, Heartbreak Bay, will Vader, but it was the actor James Earl Jones who provid- be published in March 2021. The first book, Stillhouse ed the character's voice. Prowse's West Country English Lake, was one of five finalists for the IATWA Thriller accent was thought to be unsuitable for the part. Awards in 2018. But it was his role as the "Green Cross Code Man" Caine also did tie-in fiction, including a Stargate nov- from a British road safety campaign that Prowse said he el under the name Julie Fortune. She was a prolific author was most proud of. He was awarded an MBE – a Member of short fiction, with work in numerous anthologies, and of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire – in co-edited Chicks Kick Butt in 2011 with Kerrie L. 2000 for that role. Hughes. American actor Mark She is survived by her husband. Hamill – who played Darth Vader's son, Luke Skywalk- er, alongside Prowse – sent GAIMAN WINS FORRY AWARD his condolences in a tweet. "So sad to hear David The Los Angeles Science Fantasy Society Prowse has passed. He was a (LASFS) has selected as this year’s recipient kind man & much more than of the Forry Award for lifetime achievement in the SF Darth Vader," he wrote. field, reported Locusmag.com in late October. "Actor-Husband-Father- The award, named for Forrest J Ackerman and Member of the Order of the given annually since 1966, is normally given at Loscon, British Empire-3 time British held at the Marriott Los Angeles Airport Hotel. Due to the Weightlifting Champion & COVID-19 pandemic, Loscon 47 has been delayed until Safety Icon the Green Cross November 26-28, 2021.

Page 5 SITHFACTS, December 2020 Code Man. He loved his fans as much as they loved him. category. King and the Dragonflies by Kacen Callender #RIP" won the Young People’s Literature category. Tokyo Ueno Prowse was born into a working class family on July Station by Yu Miri, translated by Morgan Giles, won the 1, 1935, and grew up in a council estate in Southmead, in Translated Literature category. southwestern England. He gained a scholarship to attend Winners for non-fiction and poetry were also an- Bristol Grammar School. nounced. He had a passion for bodybuilding and was crowned 388 books were submitted for the Fiction category, British Weightlifting Champion several times in the 130 books for Translated Literature, and 311 books for 1960s. He became lifelong friends with actors Arnold Young People’s Literature. The 2020 Fiction judges were Schwarzenegger in his weightlifting years, according to Roxane Gay (chair), Cristina Henríquez, Laird Hunt, Re- website IMDb. becca Makkai, and Keaton Patterson. The Translated Lit- His broad physique and towering figure helped land erature judges were Heather Cleary, John Darnielle, Anne him roles as monsters and villains in TV shows and films. Ishii, Brad Johnson, and Dinaw Mengestu (chair). The He played the monster in The Horror of Frankenstein in Young People’s Literature judges were Randy Ribay, 1970, the same role in Hammer’s Frankenstein and the Neal Shusterman, Ebony Elizabeth Thomas, Joan Trygg Monster from Hell in 1974, and a bearded torturer in (chair), and Colleen AF Venable. Carry on Henry in 1971. That same year he made an ap- Each of the category winners receive $10,000 and a pearance as a bodyguard in Stanley Kubrick's dystopian bronze sculpture. film A Clockwork Orange in 1971. For more information, including the complete lists of He played a circus strongman in Vampire Circus winners, see the National Book Foundation site. (1972), a Minotaur in the serial “The Time Monster” (also 1972), and an android named Coppin in in 1973. He appeared in an epi- sode of Space: 1999, "The Beta Cloud," right before he by Beth Elderkin, io9.gizmodo.com 11-30-2020 was cast as Darth Vader. Around that time, he appeared as It’s counted as one of the biggest debates among Lord the Black Knight in the Terry Gilliam film Jabberwocky of the Rings fans: Who can grow a beard? Well, J.R.R. and was supposed to play Minoton (a magical bronze au- Tolkien himself has the answer in a previously un- tomaton created by a sorceress) in Sinbad and the Eye of published essay expanding the world of Middle-earth, part the Tiger (1977), but the part went to Peter Mayhew in- of a new collection of works that’s set to come out next stead, who later played Chewbacca in Star Wars. year. Prowse would play Darth Vader in all three of the As reported by the Guardian, HarperCollins is getting original Star Wars films, in 1977, 1980 and 1983. ready to release a new collection of previously un- Health and fitness remained an interest for Prowse, published Tolkien essays called The Nature of Middle- who helped to train Christopher Reeve for the lead role in earth, edited by Tolkien expert and head of the Elvish Superman (1978) after lobbying for the part himself. In a Linguistic Fellowship Carl F. Hostetter. The release has television interview, he related how his response to being been authorized by the Tolkien estate, which took over told "we've found our Superman" was "Thank you very Tolkien’s collection following the retirement of its previ- much." Only then was he told that Reeve had been chosen ous caretaker, Christopher Tolkien, who died earlier this for the role and he was to only be a trainer. He also year. trained Cary Elwes for his role as Westley in The Princess This collection of writings, which were drafted later Bride, and wrote a book called Fitness is Fun. in Tolkien’s life, explores the world of Middle-earth and He published an autobiography, Straight from the divulges some of its secrets. Topics include: Elvish im- Force's Mouth, in 2011, and in 2015, he starred in a doc- mortality and reincarnation, the geography of the king- umentary concerning his role as Darth Vader, entitled I dom of Gondor, and the long-standing question of who Am Your Father. can grow a beard in Middle-earth. HarperCollins’ deputy Prowse was married in 1963 to Norma Scammell and publishing director Chris Smith called the collection a was the father of three children. He was a prominent sup- “treasure trove” for Tolkien fans and scholars. porter of Bristol Rugby Club, and has lived in south Lon- “For him, Middle-earth was part of an entire world to don since 1963. be explored,” Smith said. “The writings in The Nature of Middle-earth reveal the journeys that he took as he sought to better understand his unique creation.”

The Nature of Middle-earth comes as Tolkien’s world Winners of the National Book Awards (NBA) in the anticipates yet another resurgence; Amazon Studios is Fiction, Young People’s Literature, and Translated Litera- working on a new Lord of the Rings series, which saw ture categories were announced November 18, 2020 in a some production delays because of the Coronavirus pan- virtual ceremony, reported Locusmag.com. demic. The Nature of Middle-earth is set to come out in Interior Chinatown by Charles Yu won the Fiction summer 2021.

Page 6 SITHFACTS, December 2020 despite becoming severely airsick during his first airplane TEST PILOT CHUCK YEAGER DIES ride, signed up for a program that allowed enlisted men to

GRASS VALLEY, Calif. (AP) – Retired Air Force become pilots. Brig. Gen. Charles “Chuck” Yeager, the World War II Yeager shot down 13 German planes on 64 missions fighter pilot ace and quintessential test pilot who showed during World War II, including five on a single mission. he had the “right stuff” when in 1947 he became the first He was shot down over German-held France but escaped person to fly faster than sound, died December 7. He was with the help of French partisans. After World War II, he 97 years old. became a test pilot at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in His wife, Victoria Yeager, tweeted, “It is w/ profound Dayton, Ohio. sorrow, I must tell you that my life love General Chuck Among the flights he made after breaking the sound Yeager passed just before 9 pm ET. An incredible life barrier was one on Dec. 12. 1953, when he flew an X-1A well lived, America’s greatest Pilot, & a legacy of to a record of more than 1,600 mph. strength, adventure, & patriotism will be remembered Yeager was awarded the Silver Star, the Distin- forever.” guished Flying Cross, the Bronze Star, the Air Medal and Yeager’s death is “a tremendous loss to our nation,” the Purple Heart. President Harry S. Truman awarded him NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine said in a statement. the Collier air trophy in December 1948 for his breaking “Gen. Yeager’s pioneering and innovative spirit advanced the sound barrier. He also received the Presidential Medal America’s abilities in the sky and set our nation’s dreams of Freedom in 1985. soaring into the jet age and the space age. He said, ‘You Yeager retired from the Air Force in 1975 and moved don’t concentrate on risks. You concentrate on results. No to a ranch in Cedar Ridge in Northern California where he risk is too great to prevent the necessary job from getting continued working as a consultant to the Air Force and done.’” Northrop Corp. and became well known to younger gen- Yeager, from a small town in West Virginia, flew for erations as a television pitchman for automotive parts and more than 60 years, including piloting an F-15 to near heat pumps. 1,000 mph at Edwards in October 2002 at age 79. He married Glennis Dickhouse of Oroville, Califor- “Living to a ripe old age is not an end in itself. The nia, on Feb. 26, 1945. She died of ovarian cancer in De- trick is to enjoy the years remaining,” he wrote in Yeager: cember 1990. They had four children: Donald, Michael, An Autobiography. “I haven’t yet done everything, but by Sharon and Susan. Yeager married Victoria Scott D’An- the time I’m finished, I won’t have missed much. If I au- gelo in 2003. ger in (crash) tomorrow, it won’t be with a frown on my face. I’ve had a ball.” TIME MAGAZINE NAMES 100 On Oct. 14, 1947, Yeager, then a 24-year-old captain, pushed an orange, bullet-shaped Bell X-1 rocket plane MUST-READ BOOKS OF 2020 past 660 mph to break the sound barrier, at the time a daunting aviation milestone. Time Magazine released a list of 100 Must-Read The modest Yeager said in 1947 he could have gone Books of 2020 in early November, reported Lo- even faster if the plane had carried more fuel. He said the cusmag.com. The list includes many of genre interest: ride “was nice, just like riding fast in a car.” Leave the World Behind by Rumaan Alam, Followers His exploits were told in Tom Wolfe’s book The by Megan Angelo, We Ride Upon Sticks by Quan Barry, Right Stuff, and in the 1983 film it inspired. Piranesi by Susanna Clarke, Agency by , Yeager was born Feb. 23, 1923, in Myra, a tiny com- The City We Became by N.K. Jemisin, The Only Good munity on the Mud River deep in an Appalachian hollow Indians by Stephen Graham Jones, The Glass Hotel by about 40 miles southwest of Charleston. The family later Emily St. John Mandel, Migrations by Charlotte McCo- moved to Hamlin, the county seat. His father was an oil naghy, A Children’s Bible by Lydia Millet, Tokyo Ueno and gas driller and a farmer. Station by Yu Miri, Earthlings by Sayaka Murata, Kim “What really strikes me looking over all those years Jiyoung, Born 1982 by Cho Nam-Joo, and I Hold a Wolf is how lucky I was, how lucky, for example, to have been by the Ears by Laura van den Berg. born in 1923 and not 1963 so that I came of age just as For the full list, see Time‘s website. aviation itself was entering the modern era,” Yeager said in a December 1985 speech at the Smithsonian Air and VIDEO GAME HUGO ANNOUNCED Space Museum. “I was just a lucky kid who caught the right ride.” DisCon III, the 79th Worldcon, will include a “Best Yeager enlisted in the Army Air Corps after graduat- Video Game” category in the 2021 Hugo Awards, report- ing from high school in 1941. He later regretted that his ed Locusmag.com in late November. lack of a college education prevented him from becoming DisCon III co-chair Colette Fozard said, “Since early an astronaut. He started off as an aircraft mechanic and, 2020, many of us have spent more time gaming than we

Page 7 SITHFACTS, December 2020 ever expected. This award will offer fans an opportunity Corben, he had set such a high standard of quality that he to celebrate the games that have been meaningful, joyful, was quickly picked up by Warren Publishing, one of the and exceptional over this past year. Video games draw mainstream horror comic book magazines of the time. from the same deeply creative well that has fed science In 1975, Moebius, Druillet, and Jean-Pierre Dionnet fiction and fantasy writing and art for so many years. This started the French horror/fantasy/sci-fi comic book maga- innovative and interactive genre has brought us new ways zine, Métal Hurlant. Corben was very interested in work- of story-telling as well as new stories to tell and we are ing with those comic book legends on the magazine and glad to honor them.” he sent them samples right away and he was soon work- The Best Video Game special category is for 2021 ing on Metal Hurlant and then its American counterpart, only, though the “Hugo Study Committee is also consid- Heavy Metal. ering Best Game or Interactive Experience as a potential During this period, Corben also drew one of the earli- permanent category.” DisCon III will be held August 25- est graphic novels actually pitched as a "graphic novel," 29, 2021, in Washington, D.C. the 1975 Robert E. Howard sword and sorcery adaptation, Bloodstar. Corben brought his earlier concept, Den with him to ARTIST RICHARD CORBEN DIES Heavy Metal. Den was about a scrawny young man who by Brian Cronin, cbr.com 12-10-2020 is transported to Neverwhere, a world that is sort of a Richard Corben, one of the most accomplished horror mixture of all of the iconic fictional universes (think Rob- and fantasy comic book artists of the 20th Century, ert E. Howard's Hyborian Age combined with horror uni- passed away on December 2 after heart surgery an- verses, as well). Den becomes a muscle-bound warrior nounced his wife. He was 80 years old. and has all sorts of over-the-top adventures against horrif- Best known for his work on the sci-fi/fantasy comic ic monsters while having erotic dalliances with many bux- book magazine Heavy Metal, Corben's many accolades om nude women. In the world of Richard Corben, every- during his long career in comics include being inducted thing was done to the extreme, from sex to horror, he was into the Will Eisner Hall of Fame in 2012 and recently the living epitome of This Is Spinal Tap's volume dials becoming one of the very few American comic book crea- that "go up to eleven." tors to win the prestigious Grand Prix de la ville In 1986, Corben started his own publishing company, d'Angoulême, awarded by the Angoulême International Fantagor Pres, where he continued to put out new Den Comics Festival (the second-largest comic book festival material, as well as the acclaimed Rip in Time series with in Europe). Corben was the president of the 2019 An- writer Bruce Jones. In 1988, Corben also illustrated Vic goulême Festival. and Blood: The Chronicles of , work- Corben began his career as an animator and in fact, ing with in a continuation of Ellison's icon- one of his earliest short ic "Boy and His Dog" series. films, Den, would later For the general public, one of Corben's become probably his most most iconic pieces is probably his cover art famous comic book crea- to the 1977 Meat Loaf/Jim Steinman al- tion, as well. Corben then bum, Bat Out of Hell, one of the best- began working in the bur- selling albums in history (selling over 43 geoning underground co- million copies to date). mix scene of the late Corben, though, was never one to rest 1960s/early 1970s, back on his laurels. He continued to produce when the prevalence of horror and fantasy artwork well into the head shops (stores that 21st Century, including a long stint at Mar- primarily sold drug para- vel in the 2000s drawing a number of Mar- phernalia) in the United vel MAX miniseries, starring iconic char- States made selling indie acters like Punisher, Luke Cage and Ghost comix an actual sustaina- Rider. ble career as an artist. In 2008, Corben drew the Hellboy When the Supreme miniseries, The Crooked Man, written by Court ruled in 1973 that Hellboy creator, Mike Mignola. The work local communities could helped to show Corben's brilliance to a set their own standards for whole new generation, with the series win- obscenity, head shops ning multiple Eisner Awards for its dis- went out of business all turbing horror imagery. He did a few more over the country, decimat- highly-acclaimed Hellboy series. ing the underground co- He is survived by his wife of 55 years, mix industry. Luckily for Madonna "Dona" Corben.

Page 8 SITHFACTS, December 2020 wrote. SFWA & FOSTER CLAIM DISNEY Trenchard-Smith mentioned the "innate sense of hu- mor" Keays-Byrne brought with him to every production. WITHHOLDING MONEY "Hugh had a generous heart, offering a helping hand to

The Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America people in need, or a place to stay to a homeless teenager. (SFWA) and author Alan Dean Foster held a press confer- He cared about social justice and preserving the environ- ence November 18, claiming that Disney has been with- ment long before these issues became fashionable," holding payment for Foster’s work on Star Wars and Al- Trenchard-Smith continued. "His life was governed by his ien novelizations, reported Locusmag.com. sense of the oneness of humanity. We will miss his exam- According to their press release, “Foster was original- ple and his friendship." ly contracted to write the Alien novelizations by No other information on his death was given. Books, and the Star Wars novelizations by Lucasfilm. Keays-Byrne's Mad Max legacy extends beyond Fury Both companies regularly paid his royalties. When The Road – about 36 years before that when he debuted in the Walt Disney Company acquired the rights to these noveli- film series' first movie in 1979 as Toecutter, the main zations in 2015, the payments stopped although the books antagonist as the head of a motorcycle gang terrorizing continue to be sold. Disney continues to get money for the the outback. books. Alan Dean Foster, and possibly other authors with On returning for Fury Road as the raging tyrannical similar contracts, have not been paid.” lord of his Citadel, he told The New York Times earlier Foster brought the issue to SFWA’s grievance com- this year, "It was a wonderful thing to feel everyone mittee last year. SFWA president Mary Robinette Kowal around me crashing about in their costumes and absolute- stated: “In my decade with the organization, the fact that ly living it." we are forced to present this publicly is unprecedented. So Miller recalled in a 2015 interview with USA Today too, are the problems. The simple problem is that we have that he brought Keays-Byrne back partly because an early a writer who is not being paid. The larger problem has the print of the first Mad Max had a bad American dub of the potential to affect every writer. Disney’s argument is that actor's voice. "I always felt so guilty about that," Miller they have purchased the rights but not the obligations of said. "I thought I had to make up for it in some way." the contract. In other words, they believe they have the "It's a sad day to have to say goodbye to The Toecut- right to publish work, but are not obligated to pay the ter and Immortan Joe," filmmaker Edgar Wright tweeted. writer no matter what the contract says. If we let this "RIP Hugh Keays-Byrne, who played indelible baddies in stand, it could set precedent to fundamentally alter the the first and last Mad Max films – 36 years apart." way copyright and contracts operate in the United States. Born May 18, 1947, in Srinagar, Keays-Byrne and his All a publisher would have to do to break a contract British parents moved to England when he was child. He would be to sell it to a sibling company. began his career as a stage actor, joining the Royal Shake- “If they are doing this to Alan Dean Foster, one of the speare Company in productions of As You Like It, Ham- great science fiction writers of our time, then what are let, King Lear, Much Ado About Nothing, The Tempest, they doing to the younger writers who do not know that a and more. His television career began in 1967 with Bell- contract is a contract?” Kowal continued. bird and Boy Meets Girl, and his film roles kicked off with 1974's Stone. Keays-Byrne would later appear in as Mr. Stubb in MAD MAX’S IMMORTAN JOE DIES 1998's Moby Dick, the character Grunchlk in episodes of Farscape, and in a minor role for 2011's Sleeping Beauty. Hugh Keays-Byrne, the Anglo-Australian actor be- Mad Max: Fury Road was his final film role. hind Immortan Joe in 2015's Mad Max: Fury Road, died December 1 during a hospital stay, according to his friend and former movie director Brian Trenchard-Smith. He was 73 years old. A rep for Keays-Byrne confirmed that he died peace- fully and that his family requests privacy at this time, re- ported ew.com. by Germain Lussier, io9.gizmodo.com 12-07-2020 Trenchard-Smith helmed Keays-Byrne in films like Patty Jenkins finished Wonder Woman 1984 before 1975's The Dragon Flies, aka The Man From Hong Kong. the world changed. The writer-director had completed Afterwards, the actor became "a good friend" to him and work on the highly anticipated superhero sequel in early wife Margaret for 46 years, as the filmmaker wrote in a March, before COVID-19 forced most of the world into a Facebook post on Wednesday. "We spent many happy lockdown. Then everything went quiet. Sunday mornings with him, his partner Christina, and a “I just cooked and cleaned all year, and no one has seen it group of fellow actors and artists (the Macao Light Com- until now,” Jenkins told a group of journalists, including pany) at the house they shared in Centennial Park," he io9, via Zoom the first week of December. “It’s been so surreal because you worked so, so hard and then all of a

Page 9 SITHFACTS, December 2020 sudden you’re just, like, popped right out to a world as if it never existed.” way they can is really awesome.” She’s talking, of course, about the fact that Wonder Woman 1984 originally holiday gift to the world, and we can all unwrap it on was supposed to be out last year. Then it December 25. got moved to June. Then to August, Oct- ober, and at last December – when it will finally be getting a controversial release UNIVERSAL'S VAN HELSING simultaneously both in theaters and stream- TO STAB VAMPIRES ONCE AGAIN ing on HBO Max. It’s not what she wanted, but Jenkins has begun to see a positive to the by Beth Elderkin, io9.gizmodo.com 12-1-2020 situation. This character may not be undead, but they’re cer- “It was one of the hardest decisions we’ve tainly getting another life. Universal Pictures has cast its ever made,” Jenkins said. “But it’s interesting to eye on a new Van Helsing adaptation, directed by Julius actually sit there and face, like, ‘OK, we’re giving Avery (Overlord) with Aquaman’s James Wan on board up the money. You’re not making any money with as a producer. your film.’ But the truth is, what’s the point of a It was first reported by Deadline and confirmed by film? The point of the film is the message you’re the Hollywood Reporter that Universal Pictures was add- trying to connect to the world with. That’s the most ing Van Helsing, the story of the legendary vampire important thing. So in that way, when this idea was pre- hunter who went stake-to-heart with Dracula in Bram sented, I was like, ‘Oh, my God, this is the moment.’ This Stoker’s iconic tale, to its slate of upcoming monster is the moment where this thing we have can become movies. This comes on the heels of Blumhouse’s The something to give, and a better thing, and try to be about Invisible Man starring Elisabeth Moss, which reignited hope.” Universal’s monster franchise earlier this year after the Wonder Woman 1984 is not simply Wonder Woman 2 failure of its own Dark Universe. – in fact, its cast and crew are hesitant to even see it as a Van Helsing is the latest in a string of approved mon- direct sequel. There are new faces, friend and foe alike, ster movies for Universal, which abandoned its intercon- for Diana and Steve to meet, new struggles for our hero- nected universe in favor of smaller, standalone films that ine to face. Above all, what Wonder Woman 1984 hopes use the studio’s classic horror characters. We’ve got Scar- to bring to the table by taking us back to the excesses of lett Johansson on board to possibly star in Bride of Frank- ‘80s America is something the first movie could only deal enstein and Ryan Gosling is tapped to be the next Wolf- with in broader strokes: a more pointed insight into how man. In addition, there’s Paul Feig’s upcoming monster the more things have changed since 1984, the more things comedy Dark Army, a “Monster Mash” movie musical, have stayed very much the same. and Lord and Miller’s “modern-day, tongue-in-cheek “[What] I loved about the first movie [was] where thriller” with ties to the monster world starring Channing you could talk about current day, but use the metaphor of Tatum. Funny enough, Tatum was previously poised to another time to detach it from everybody getting particu- play Van Helsing back in 2017 – it’s unclear whether that lar about the details,” Jenkins said of the choice to move could happen now, given how he’s now attached to anoth- Diana’s next journey into the ‘80s. “I thought that was so er Universal project. cool about 1917, 1918, where you could say, yes, ‘We’re As far as what we can expect from this version of talking about war, mankind’s mechanization of war, the Van Helsing, Deadline reports that it could be a darker, way we make our choices,’ without anybody getting lit- more violent interpretation of the character than what we eral and without having to make up a war with much less got in 2004's movie starring Hugh Jackman. weight. I think the same thing is true about the ‘80s. We’re talking about mankind at their worst, most exces- sive, and their greatest, most grand and opulent, and artis- tically [doing] some incredible, creative things.”

Jenkins has long been a strong proponent of the theat- rical experience, but she said when the idea of a Christ- by Beth Elderkin, io9.gizmodo.com 11-30-2020 mas at-home release came up, it just was too perfect to The Fab Four are no more. Doctor Who stars Tosin ignore. And she can go back to advocating for theatrical Cole and Bradley Walsh – who’ve played companions releases another time. Ryan and Graham for the past two seasons – have con- “I love Christmas and the fact that we get to play in firmed that they’re set to depart the TARDIS after the people’s houses on Christmas Day is like a great honor of upcoming New Year’s holiday special. my life. Really. Truly,” she said. “I never thought I’d say In an interview with BBC Studios, Cole and Walsh that revealed that “Revolution of the Daleks” will be their fi-

Page 10 SITHFACTS, December 2020 nal episode of Doctor Who, confirming a long-standing (1975) and Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade in 1989. rumor that two of Jodie Whittaker’s three companions His turn as a tough Irish cop in Depression-era Chi- would be leaving the series – leaving only Mandip Gill, cago in Brian De Palma’s The Untouchables in 1987 who plays Yaz. brought him a supporting actor Oscar. Walsh called their final turn as Doctor Who compan- In his early career, his physique was his main asset as ions “sad and poignant,” with both actors noting how he modeled and picked up acting jobs where he could. In much they’ve loved being a part of the iconic sci-fi series 1956, he landed the role of a battered prizefighter in the – especially since their time on the series featured the first BBC production of for a Heavyweight. Good female Doctor. Cole, in particular, noted how much he’ll notices brought him to the attention of the entertainment miss the fandom. community, and his first film was No Road Back, a B “It’s been an honor to work on such a cultural institu- crime movie in 1956. And then 1962’s Dr. No, the first of tion with fans across the world. The people like me on the the Bond films, made him an international star. screen come and go, but it’s the people behind the scenes His stature grew with the ever more popular sequels and the fans that will always be there keeping the Doctor From Russia With Love, Goldfinger and Thunderball, Who world alive and exciting,” he said. which arrived over the next four years. After 1967’s You Whittaker also confirmed the news, saying she was Only Live Twice, he left the Bond franchise, but he was “devastated” to lose Cole and Walsh as costars: “On a coaxed back for 1971’s Diamonds Are Forever. With that, personal note, absolutely devastated. Both of them had to he left Bond behind – though money would tempt him carry me to my trailer. I haven’t cried like that for such a back once last time in 1983 for Never Say Never Again. long time. Brad couldn’t cope with it at all. Tosin was He took a major misstep with sci-fi film Zardoz, and like, ‘I really can’t cope with you getting this upset.’” his career seemed to be foundering. As of now, it’s unclear whether Doctor Who will re- But he bounced back in 1974 with a supporting role turn to its more traditional pattern of “one Doctor, one in Murder on the Orient Express and in 1976’s Robin and companion,” or if new cast members will be added to the Marian opposite Audrey Hepburn, which was embraced series. But for now, it will be a sad but sweet goodbye to by critics. The film cemented Connery’s reputation as a one of the show’s greatest father-son teams. Doctor versatile, serious screen actor. Who’s “Revolution of the Daleks” arrives on January 1, In the late 1970s, there were more missteps such as 2021. In addition, the series is entering production for its Meteor, but he scored in Terry Gilliam’s Time Bandits. It 13th season, which is set to have eight episodes. wasn’t until after his last Bond film that his standing as a box office star caught up to his critical reputation, thanks mostly to two huge worldwide hits: Highlander and The 007’S SEAN CONNERY DIES AT 90 Name of the Rose. by Richard Natale, Variety 10-31-2020 Sean Connery, the Scottish-born actor who rocketed to fame as James Bond and became one of the franchise’s most popular and enduring international stars, died on October 31. He was 90 years old. Connery, long regarded as one of the best actors to By the 1990s, he was so popular that his uncredited have portrayed the iconic spy, was knighted by Queen cameo as King Richard in Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves Elizabeth II in 2000 and marked his 90th birthday in Au- became one of the film’s highlights. He was still a force gust. His death was confirmed by his family, who said to contend with in the foreign market, as Highlander 2, that the actor “died peacefully in his sleep surrounded by Medicine Man, Rising Sun, Just Cause and First Knight family” in the Bahamas. proved over the next several years. Connery was an audience favorite for more than 40 One setback was a bout with throat cancer in the ear- years and one of the screen’s most reliable and distinctive ly 1990s, but Connery rebounded with a burst of activity. leading men. The actor was recently voted the best James He starred with Nicolas Cage in 1996 actioner The Rock, Bond actor in an August Radio Times poll in Britain. playing a character that drew more than a little on his his- Bond producers Michael G. Wilson and Barbara tory as James Bond. In 2000, he essayed a very different Broccoli said he “was and shall always be remembered as role and received positive reviews for Finding Forrester, the original James Bond whose indelible entrance into playing a reclusive writer who bonds with a young black cinema history began when he announced those unforget- basketball player who’s an aspiring scribe himself. table words, ‘The name’s Bond… James Bond.’” Nevertheless, he continued with action roles well However, Connery – who made his debut in the first after his 70th birthday, playing the legendary adventurer Bond film, Dr. No in 1962 – also transcended Ian Flem- Allan Quatermain in 2003’s The League of Extraordinary ing’s sexy Agent 007, and went on to distinguish himself Gentlemen (based on a graphic novel). He announced his with a long and mature career in such films as The Wind retirement in 2005. He voiced a James Bond videogame and the Lion (1975), The Man Who Would Be King the same year, and subsequently did other voice acting.

Page 11 SITHFACTS, December 2020 Thomas Sean Connery was born of Irish ancestry in Watchmen, in which he played Doctor Manhattan on the the slums of Edinburgh on August 25, 1930. Poverty HBO series. He'll also appear in Candyman (delayed due robbed him of an education, and by his teens he’d left to the pandemic) and The Matrix 4. Hemsworth, mean- school and was working as an unskilled laborer. At 17, he while, will return to his Thor character for Thor: Love and was drafted into the Royal Navy, but he was discharged Thunder, as well as his Extraction role for Netflix. three years later due to a serious case of ulcers. Mad Max: Fury Road, which hit theaters in 2015, He returned to Edinburgh and worked a variety of starred Tom Hardy as Max Rockatansky opposite The- jobs. After moving to London, he learned of an opening ron's Furiosa. The film won eight Academy Awards. in the chorus of South Pacific. He took a crash dancing Theron opened up to The Hollywood Reporter in ear- and singing course and, surprisingly, landed the role, in ly July about hearing the news of director George Miller which he stayed for 18 months. eyeing The Witch's Taylor-Joy, , to portray Connery was devoted to his native Scotland and used the vehicular warrior in her younger years. his stature to press for the re-establishment of a Scottish "It’s a tough one to swallow," she said. "Listen, I ful- parliament. When the body reconvened in 1999, 296 years ly respect George, if not more so in the aftermath of mak- after its last meeting, Connery addressed the first session, ing Fury Road with him. He’s a master, and I wish him where he was greeted with a thunderous ovation. The next nothing but the best. Yeah, it’s a little heartbreaking, for year, when he was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II – an sure. I really love that character [Furiosa], and I’m so honor he called “one of the proudest days of my life” – he grateful that I had a small part in creating her. She will asked that the investiture be performed in Edinburgh. forever be someone I think of and reflect on fondly. Obvi- Connery published his autobiography, Being a Scot, ously, I would love to see that story continue, and if co-written with Murray Grigor, in 2008. Besides his [Miller] feels like he has to go about it this way, then I knighthood and Academy Award, he received the Kenne- trust him in that manner.” dy Center Honors in 1999 and the American Film Insti- Miller told The Times he once thought of using CG tute’s lifetime achievement award in 2006. technology to de-age Theron for the planned prequel Connery is survived by his second wife, painter movie, but came to the conclusion that, "despite the val- Micheline Roquebrune, whom he married in 1975; his son iant attempts on The Irishman, I think there’s still an un- by first wife Diane Cilento, actor Jason Connery; and a canny valley. Everyone is on the verge of solving it, par- grandson from Jason’s marriage to actress Mia Sara. ticular Japanese videogame designers, but there’s still a According to his family, there will be a “private cere- pretty wide valley, I believe." mony followed by a memorial yet to be planned once the virus has ended.”

MAD MAX PREQUEL NAMES CAST by Nick Romano, ew.com 10-13-2020 Rae Carson of Arizona has been confirmed as co- The Mad Max: Fury Road prequel is going fast-and- Guest of Honor for Bubonicon 52: Take Two, which Furiosa. Warner Bros. has officially tapped The Queen’s should be held August 20-22, 2021, in Albuquerque. Car- Gambit actress Anya Taylor-Joy to portray a younger son replaces Becky Chambers who was unable to commit version of Charlize Theron's character in Furiosa. The as a special guest in 2021 (when 2020 went virtual). studio also has cast Avengers star Chris Hemsworth and Carson, born in 1973, is primarily a Young Adult Watchmen Emmy winner Yahya Abdul-Mateen II in roles. fantasy writer. Her debut novel, The Girl of Fire and George Miller will direct and produce Furiosa along- Thorns, was published in 2011, and was a finalist for the side Doug Mitchell, and co-wrote the script with Nico William C. Morris YA Award and the Lathouris. Award. It was selected as 2012 Top Ten Best Fiction for The filmmaker previously explained that, while writ- Young Adults by Young Adult Library Services Associa- ing the script for Fury Road, he wrote extensive back- tion. She also has written several tie-ins for Star Wars. grounds for the characters, including Furiosa and what life in The Green Place was like. Talk of a potential pre- quel go back years and Miller told The New York Times that, after he finishes Three Thousand Y ears of Longing, "hopefully everything settles down with the pandemic, we’ll see what the world allows us to do with Furiosa." Taylor-Joy was recently seen in The New Mutants, an She reports her next novel will be released in Fall X-Men film she shot in 2017 but hit theaters this past Au- 2021, and that it “was inspired by someone telling me I gust. She also filmed roles in Edgar Wright's Last Night should never begin a story with someone waking up. So in Soho and Robert Eggers' The Northman. of course that's how it starts.” Abdul-Mateen is coming off of his Emmy win for Carson is married to science fiction writer C. C. Fin-

Page12 SITHFACTS, December 2020 lay, who very recently stepped down as editor of The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction. Other special guests for Bubonicon 52: Take Two are Keith R.A. DeCandi- do as co-GoH, A. Lee Martinez as Toast- master, and Chaz Kemp of Colorado as Guest Artist. Con chair is Craig Chris- singer, with Jessica Coyle and Mandy Self acting as assis- tant chairs. Of course, it was the COVID-19 pandemic that caused Bubonicon 52 to be postponed to August 2021. And now there is a possibility that Bubonicon again will not be a physical in-person convention in the New Year. Some scientists think that large mass gatherings may be possible by Summer 2021, but a lot depends on the timing and availability of vaccines to most Americans plus state restrictions on people gathering together. With that in mind, weekend passes for Bubonicon 52: Take Two will not go on sale until late February or even mid-March as the Bubonicon Inc Board monitors the real- ity of the situation. Perry & Terri Rodent want to remind fans that we are all in this together. Please stay safe, wear those masks, wash your hands, and be well. And cross your fingers for August 2021! Updates will be posted on www.bubonicon.com, of course, and in this newsletter.

Page13 SITHFACTS, December 2020 ASFS MEETING REPORTS — OCTOBER 2020: RADFORD TALK

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